Tr a n s b o u n d a r y W a t e r M a n a g e m e n t
Transboundary Water Management in the Congo Basin
(Gestion Transfrontralière de l’Eau dans le Bassin du Congo)
Project Partner:
International Commission of the
Congo-Oubangui-Sangha Basin (CICOS)
Project Region:
Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic
Project
The project aims to strengthen the capacities of CICOS
in the sectors of inland navigation and water resources
management. The project works in four intervention areas:
of the Congo, Central African Republic,
Republic of Cameroon, Gabon
Project Term:
Overall: 2006 - 2016
Current phase: January 2013 – July 2016
Project Budget:
Total: EUR 11 million
1. Inland Navigation
The project facilitates the application of the Code on
Inland Navigation CEMAC-DRC to improve the efficiency of inland navigation and increase security along
the river.
Current phase: EUR 6 million
Context
Located in the heart of Africa, the Congo basin extends
across ten countries, in an area seven times larger than
Germany. It is the second largest river basin worldwide
just after the Amazon basin. With an average flow of
41,000 m3/s, the Congo River accounts for over a third of
Africa’s freshwater resources and offers considerable potential, particularly for the development of irrigation and
hy-dropower production. The Congo is one of the main
means of transportation in Central Africa, used for both
transportation of passengers and transportation of goods.
The network of waterways upstream of Kinshasa-Brazzaville is estimated at more than 25,000 km.
Aware of the development issues in the Congo basin, four
riparian countries (Cameroon, Central African Republic,
Republic of the Congo and Democratic Republic of Congo)
signed in 1999 an agreement to establish a uniform river
regime and creating the International Commission of the
Congo-Ubangi-Sangha basin (CICOS). CICOS is mandated with the promotion of inland navigation and water
resources development in the basin. The Government of
the Federal Republic of Germany is supporting CICOS
since 2006 with the implementation of the project on
transboundary water management in the Congo basin.
2. Regional Vocational Training Centre
The project supports the establishment and strengthening of the Regional Training Centre on Inland Navigation (CRFNI) through the design and implementation
of training programs and the rehabilitation of its buildings and facilities.
3. Water Management
In collaboration with the European Union, the French
Development Agency and the African Development Bank,
the project supports CICOS in the development of decision making tools for the development and sustainable
management of water resources in the Congo basin.
4. Organizational Development
The project supports the implementation of a participatory approach in the field of water management, through
the establishment of dialogue platforms to inform, consult
and involve stakeholders in the process of developing a
Master plan for water resources develop-ment and management in the Congo basin (SDAGE).
Impact
Since 2009, the CRFNI has trained more than 1500 crew
members and administrative officers. In 2013, the Minister
of Transport in DRC made it mandatory for all captains
C I COS
In addition to promoting security on the river, the project
supports CICOS and Member States with the reduction
of non-physical barriers along the river. For instance, the
Governments of DRC and the Republic of Congo agreed
to eliminate a tax of 5.00 USD collected from all passen-
gers traveling between Kinshasa and Brazzaville. It is now
cheaper and faster to travel between these two African cities.
In the water sector the project facilitates the process of
sustainable infrastructure development, which is an engine
for economic growth. Access to electricity and water supply
is still very low throughout the basin, less than 10 % in
average. Despite the urgency, water infrastructures must be
designed to reduce the impact on the environment and
account for their potential effects in other Member States.
The project is currently supporting the formulation of a
guideline on prior notification to be tested in the process of
developing Inga III.
10°E
20°E
30°E
Tchad
C I C OS
© CICOS 2014
Nigeria
Ethiopie
Sud-Soudan
RCA
Cameroun
5°N
5°N
O uban
Ou lé
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Ouganda
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Sa n
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Guinée
Equatoriale
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Lu
Lac
Mai -Ndombe
Ka
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RDC
Rwanda
Burundi
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Congo
ala b a
Kw
a
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Luk g a
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5°S
L
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Lac
Moero
(3.689.000 km2)
0
200
400
Angola
Lu a
Changement de nom de rivière
l apa
Cours d’eau principaux
600
Km
10°E
Imprint
Dag-Hammarskjöld-Weg 1-5
65760 Eschborn/Germany
T +49 6196 79 - 0
F +49 6196 79 - 80 11 15
E [email protected]
I www.giz.de
Contact:
Dr. Bertrand Meinier
Croisement des avenues Wagenia
et Poids Lourds
Building Kilou 3rd floor
Kinshasa – Gombe, DR Kongo
T +234 (0) 998012074
E [email protected]
Iwww.giz.de
Photos and map:
© GIZ, Damien Brunel, Heike Grebe,
Jorn Schumann
Design by:
creative republic / Thomas Maxeiner
Kommunikationsdesign, Frankfurt a. M.
Printed on 100 % recycled paper
Status: October 2014
5°S
Tanzanie
Lac
Bangwelo
Zambie
20°E
Situat ion du Bassin du Congo en Af rique Cent rale
Published by:
Deutsche Gesellschaft für
Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Lac
Tankanyika
v
ua
Bassin du Congo
10°S
Kenya
0°
Gabon
Malawi
30°E
coopération
allemande
C
CI OS
Sources: ESRI (frontières); HydroSHEDS (WWF).
Rivers of Africa (FAO).
navigating on the river to obtain a certificate from the CRFNI. The Minister made this decision after reading the
results of a CICOS study providing evidence that the main
cause of accidents along the Congo River is due to the lack
of training of the various crew members. With proper
training, more than 200 lives could be saved annually.
10°S